The methanogenic degradation of subsurface carbonaceous material is of significant commercial interest for a variety of reasons including production of natural gas (including methane). Methane is a predominant end-product of anaerobic microbially-mediated organic-matter decomposition following a variety of carbon-pathways and intermediate steps.
Recent technological advances have enabled characterization of microbial communities and the biogeochemical processes that take place in the subsurface. These processes generally occur under non-ideal conditions due to limiting nutrients and sub-optimal microbial community structure. Under normal sub-surface conditions, microbial gas formed in these natural “bioreactors” is generated at very slow rates due to limited nutrients and/or other environmental conditions, e.g., suboptimal water chemistry, pH, salinity and the like.